This invention relates to high speed food processing machines in which a vertical drive shaft supports and drives food processing blades within an upwardly open food containing bowl. The bowl, which is closed by a lid during food processing, is pivoted for pouring its contents. Typically, a powerful motor on the bottom of the bowl rotates the drive shaft, and a mixing baffle blade is supported through the lid for rotation along and around the inside surface of the bowl for removing and returning foodstuffs from the side of the bowl to the vicinity of the food processing blades for further processing. The blades are removable and interchangeable, so that the blade or other tool configurations may be matched to the processing needs at hand. Machines of this type are highly effective in processing foods, and are so fast (many operations being performed in less than a minute), that the actual processing time is but a small part of the total "turn around" time. That is, it usually takes longer to load and unload the machine than to process the food once it is in the machine. It is therefore desirable to expedite the loading and removing operations as much as possible.
Certain foodstuffs can conveniently be loaded and removed very quickly with the use of accessory metallic food baskets. To use such baskets, the blades are first removed, the basket inserted, and the blades replaced. The bowl is filled with water, and the foodstuffs, such as lettuce heads, are then placed within the food processing machine. After processing, the blades, basket, and foodstuffs are removed together. The baskets are perforated for leaving the water within the bowl for repeated operations, the lettuce automatically being drained at the same time. This saves much time, but it is essential that the dimensions of the basket be carefully preserved. Tolerances are close, so that the blades can be as effective as possible. Therefore, if the basket is bent out of shape, the blades may strike the basket, introducing metal shavings into the food.